Band energy diagrams of n-GaInP/n-AlInP(100) surfaces and heterointerfaces studied by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy

Lattice matched n-type AlInP(100) charge selective contacts are commonly grown on n-p GaInP(100) top ab-sorbers in high-efficiency III-V multijunction solar or photoelectrochemical cells. The cell performance can be greatly limited by the electron selectivity and valance band offset at this heterointerface. Understanding of the atomic and electronic properties of the GaInP/AlInP heterointerface is crucial for the reduction of photocurrent losses in III-V multijunction devices. In our paper, we investigated chemical composition and electronic prop-erties of n-GaInP/n-AlInP heterostructures by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). To mimic an in-situ interface experiment with in-situ stepwise deposition of the contact material, 1 nm -50 nm thick n-AlInP(100) epitaxial layers were grown on n-GaInP(100) buffer layer on n-GaAs(100) substrates by metal organic vapor phase epitaxy. We observed (2 x 2)/c(4 x 2) low-energy electron diffraction patterns with characteristic diffuse streaks along the [011] direction due to P-P dimers on both AlInP(100) and GaInP(100) as-prepared surfaces. Atomic composition analysis confirmed P-rich termination on both surfaces. Angle-resolved XPS measurements revealed a surface core level shift of 0.9 eV in P 2p peaks and the absence of interface core level shifts. We assigned the surface chemical shift in the P 2p spectrum to P-P bonds on a surface. We found an upward surface band bending on the (2 x 2)/c(4 x 2) surfaces most probably caused by localized mid-gap electronic states. Pinning of the Fermi level by localized electronic states remained in n-GaInP/n-AlInP heterostructures. A valence band offset of 0.2 eV was derived by XPS and band alignment diagram models for the n-n junctions were suggested.

Automated summary

In this study, we investigated the chemical composition and electronic properties of n-GaInP/n-AlInP heterostructures using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). We found surface core level shifts and upward surface band bending caused by localized mid-gap electronic states at the interface. These findings are crucial for reducing photocurrent losses in III-V multijunction solar cells.